Ingredients:

• 500 g pork sausages
• 175 g flour
• ¼ tsp salt
• grinding of black pepper
• 3 eggs
• 300 ml milk and water mixed
• 2 tbl dripping or 3 tbl vegetable oil

Ingredients: Onion Gravy:

• 3 tbl vegetable oil
• 3 onions, finely sliced
• 1 tbl flour
• 600 ml chicken or vegetable stock

Preparation:

• Brown the sausages all over and halve them – it isn’t necessary to cook them through at this stage.
• Sieve flour and salt into a bowl, make a well in the middle. Break the eggs into the well and with a hand whisk incorporate the eggs into the flour adding the milk and water mixture as you go.
• Alternatively, drop everything into a food processor and using the pulse button at first, blitz the whole lot together until it forms a smooth batter. Guess which method I use?
• In either case allow the batter to rest for about 30 minutes.
• Put the dripping or oil into a fairly shallow baking pan, and heat it at about 220 C for a couple of minutes.
• Take it out of the oven, and working quickly, pour the batter into the hot fat and arrange the sausages in the batter.
• Return to the oven and bake for about 30 – 35 minutes, until puffed and browned.
• To prepare the onion gravy, cook the onions in the oil until they are soft and lightly browned. Stir in the flour, salt and pepper and cook for 2 minutes. Slowly stir in the stock, bring to the boil, and taste for seasoning. Add a little gravy browning if you want the gravy to look more appetising.

Serves about 6.

Ingredients:

• 750 g topside/H-bone roast
• 4 whole cloves
• 1 – 2 garlic cloves
• oil & butter to cook the meat
• ¼ tsp grated nutmeg
• 1 tumbler Port plus 30 ml sugar
• salt & freshly ground black peppe
• about 2 – 3 rashers streaky bacon
• vinegar marinade, diluted 1/3 – 2/3 parts water
• 1 large onion, grated fairly finely
• 15 ml cooked tomato (thick) (reduce fresh peeled, seeded tomatoes or tinned Italian tomatoes)
• Beef stock as needed / Telma stock cube

Preparation:

• Lard the meat with slivers of garlic and strips of bacon to taste – pierce the roast with a sharp knife, push in the handle of a thin wooden spoon, and in the hole so made insert the bacon and garlic.
• Place the meat in a non-reactive bowl and pour over the diluted vinegar in sufficient to cover the roast completely. Add the cloves.
• Cover and leave overnight, but not in the refrigerator – if you leave it longer than about 18 hours, then it will need refrigeration.
• Remove the meat from the marinade, dab it as dry as possible and tie it to keep its shape while cooking. Season with salt and pepper.
• Heat the oil and butter in a deep saucepan, large enough to for the meat to fit fairly snugly. Start browning the meat, and when it is halfway browned start adding the grated onion over the meat so that the onion is finished by the time the meat is well browned all over.
• NB. Be careful not to cook at too high a temperature as the meat and onion burn easily, but also not too low as allthe juices of the meat will run out, leaving the joint very stringy and tasteless.
• This stage is a pain, as it cannot be hurried, and you need to give it your attention. Start adding the sugared port, into which the 15 ml of thick, cooked tomato has been stirred, little by little, waiting until most of the liquid has disappeared before adding more.
• Keep turning the meat so that all sides of the joint cook in the port. When the port is finished, sprinkle on the grated nutmeg, and add stock as needed, cooking on a gentle heat until the meat is tender.
• Remove the meat, skim off any fat, and, only if real necessary, thicken the gravy with a little cornflour slaked in water.
• Rest for at least 15 minutes, then slice fairly thinly.

Serves 4 – 5.

Ingredients:

• 500 g stewing meat (beef or lamb)
• 2 medium onions, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 15 ml grated fresh ginger
• 2 pieces cinnamon
• 12.5 ml curry powder
• 5 ml ground cumin
• butter/oil for cooking
• 5 ml ground coriander
• 5 – 10 ml turmeric
• 3 tomatoes, skinned, finely chopped (or tinned Italian tomatoes)
• 200 ml yoghurt
• 15 – 30 ml sugar
• 150 – 200 g uncooked rice
• salt & freshly ground pepper

Preparation:

• Brown the seasoned meat in the oil/butter. Take out the meat as it browns, and when it is all browned add the onions and ginger to the fat in the pan, adding a little extra if necessary.
• Saute until the onion starts to soften. Add the garlic and cook for a minute or two.
• Add the cinnamon, curry powder, cumin, coriander and turmeric and stir-fry for a minute or two on medium heat.
• Stir in the tomatoes, and when they have started to break down into a mush add the yoghurt.
• Bubble up the mixture, stirring constantly, and return the meat to the saucepan. Reduce the heat and simmer gently till the meat is tender and the sauce thick, adding water sparingly as needed.
• Add the well-washed rice, season well with salt, pepper and sugar. Stir together, then add boiling water a cup or two at a time, adding as it is needed, and simmer until the rice is tender.
• Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary. Serve with sambals like tomato-omon or sliced bananas.

Notes:

• A little bone in the meat adds to the flavour, but boneless meat also works well.

Serves about 4.

Ingredients:

• 600 g topside mince
• 200 g pork sausage meat
• 100 g fresh brown breadcrumbs
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 3 tbl chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tsp ground allspice
• ¼ teasp black pepper
• ½ – 1 tsp salt
• 2 eggs, beaten

Preparation:

• Lightly fry onion and garlic in a little oil – this is optional- but it does remove the raw onion taste from the finished loaf
• Combine all the ingredients and test for seasoning. Press firmly and evenly into a 1 kg loaf tin and cover tightly with foiL
• Bake at 160° C for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and cook for a further 15 – 20 minutes.
• Test for doneness – juices should run clear.
• Rest in tin for about 10 minutes, then tum out and slice.

Notes

• Allspice or pimento mustn’t be confused with mixed spice, which has a completely different taste. Ground allspice/pimento can be quite difficult to find, so feel free to change the spices to suit your taste. I find that Robertson’s Garlic and Herb mixture is quite nice in this dish.

Serves 6 – 8.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion, very thinly sliced
• about 30 – 45 ml butter
• about 750 g beef fillet
• 250 – 400 g button mushrooms, sliced thickly
• beef stock or Telma stock cube
• 150 – 250 ml sour cream
• salt & freshly ground pepper
• pinch ground nutmeg

Preparation:

• Cook the onions in the butter in a fairly large frying pan over a slow to medium heat, until the onions are soft and have started to colour.
• In the meantime slice the fillet and cut it into strips across the grain.
• Remove the onion from the pan and reserve. Tum up the heat and put in the strips of fillet.
• Season lightly and stir-fry for a few minutes until the meat starts to brown and is almost cooked.
• Push the meat to one side of the pan (or remove completely – unless your pan is really big, it would probably be better to cook the fillet in batches, so that it doesn’t release too much liquid), and add the sliced mushrooms.
• Season lightly and stir fry over fairly high heat until the mushrooms are almost cooked. Return the onion and meat (if you have taken it out) to the pan, and continue to stir-fry for a couple of minutes longer.
• Add about 100 ml of beef stock or dissolved Telma stock cube and let simmer, stirring frequently, until most of the liquid has disappeared.
• Stir in the sour cream., and bring the whole lot just to the boil.
• Season to taste with salt, pepper and nutmeg.

Serves 4 – 6.

Ingredients:

• about 2 kg meat, cubed
• fresh cubed pineapple (optional)
• dried soaked apricots (optional)
• onion wedges (optional)

Ingredients: Marinade:

• 75 ml smooth apricot jam
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 bay or lemon leaves, broken up
• 25 ml wine vinegar
• 5 ml ground pepper
• 25 ml treacle brown sugar
• 15 ml cornflour
• 25 ml curry powder
• 10 ml salt

Preparation:

• In a small saucepan mix together all the marinade ingredients and bring to the boil. Simmer for a minute or so until thickened.
• Pour it over the cubed meat immediately, stirring thoroughly to make sure that all the pieces are coated with the marinade.
• At this stage, the meat may marinade overnight in the refrigerator, or for at least 4 hours at room temperature. If you are going to marinade it for the shorter time, rub the marinade into the pieces of meat from time to time.
• It may also be frozen in the marinade for several months, in which case, thaw completely and cook immediately.
• Soak wooden skewers for a couple of hours in cold water (this helps to stop them burning if you are going to braai the sosaties over the coals).
• Thread the meat onto the skewers with all or any of the optional extras in between the meat cubes, but always begin and end the skewer with a cube of meat.
• Notes:
• Suitable meat is lean, boneless lamb, pork (fillet is best) and chicken breast or thigh cubes; this is not a recipe suitable for beef, though I have eaten it made most successfully, believe it or not, from ox liver

Serves about 6 as a meal.

Ingredients:

• 1 large bunch spinach
• 750 g stewing steak (or topside mince)
• 250 g pork or veal mince
• 375 g streaky bacon
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 – 4 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped
• 3 – 4 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped
• 3 – 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 eggs
• 5 – 6 slices bread
• 15 ml Worcestershire sauce
• salt & freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

• Cook spinach, rinse with cold water and squeeze dry. Chop the spinach fairly finely.
• Cook the onion in a little oil until starting to soften. Add the garlic and continue cooking until the onion is soft and golden.
• Set aside 4 rashers of the bacon, and mince the rest finely – together with the stewing steak if you are not using topside mince.
• Combine the minced meats, herbs, eggs, breadcrumbs (made in the processor from the bread slices with the crusts removed), Worcestershire sauce and seasonings.
• Stir in the spinach and taste for seasoning – the easiest way is to place a nugget of the mixture on a saucer and cook it in the microwave on high for about 25 – 30 seconds.
• Firmly pack the mixture into a large well-oiled loaf pan (approximately 23 x 13 x 7.5 em), smoothing the top. Stretch the reserved bacon rashers on a board with the back of a knife and press on top of the meat.
• Bake at 180° C for 1 – 1¼ hours, or until the juices run clear. Let the meatloaf stand for about 10 minutes before unmoulding and slicing it.

Notes:

• The easiest alternative to washing, trimming and cooking a bunch of spinach is to buy a pack of washed, chopped, ready-to-use spinach from the supermarket, then pierce the packet and cook it in the microwave on high for 3 – 4 minutes.
• White bread is probably best for this, brown is OK, but wholewheat isn’t.

Serves 6 – 8 generously.

Ingredients:

• 2 medium-large potatoes
• 1 pepper, red is best, diced
• oil/butter for cooking
• about ¼ – 1/3 tin tomatoes (or very ripe fresh tomatoes)
• ground nutmeg, parsley and basil to taste
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 – 2 clove(s) garlic, crushed
• 250 – 400 g beef mince
• salt & freshly ground black pepper

Ingredients: Sauce:

• 20 ml butter
• 20 ml flour
• 1¼ – 1½ cups warmed milk
• 100 – 150 g grated sharp cheese

Preparation:

• Slice potatoes about 0.5 cm thick (peel first, if you prefer), and boil in salted water until just tender. Drain thoroughly and set aside.
• Cook the onion in the butter/oil until it starts to soften and colour. Add the garlic and pepper and cook for a further 5 or so minutes.
• Stir in the mince, season lightly, and cook till brown. Add the tomatoes with a little stock or dissolved stock cube, and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste.
• Simmer until thick, then stir in chopped parsley and basil. Set aside.
• Make the sauce: melt the butter and cook the flour for a minute or so.
• Slowly stir in the milk, stirring constantly, then bring to the boil. Remove from the heat, add the cheese and season with salt and pepper (cayenne pepper is good here) to taste.
• In a smallish oven dish layer as follows : potatoes, meat sauce evenly spread out, then topped with the cheese sauce. Sprinkle the top with a little paprika (for colour) if liked, or a little extra grated cheese and breadcrumbs.

Serves 4.

Ingredients:

• 250 g pitted prunes
• 300-500 ml off-dry white wine
• 1 kg pork fillets
• 50 g flour
• 50 ml redcurrant jelly
• 10 ml chopped fresh rosemary
• 150-250 ml cream
• 80 g butter
• salt & freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

• Soak prunes in wine overnight.
• Slice pork fillets thickly, and flatten slightly. Seaon with salt and pepper and dust with flour.
• Boil the prunes briefly (works well in the microwave), drain thoroughly, reserving the liquid.
• Fry the meat in the butter until golden and cooked through. Remove and keep warm on a platter, arranging the hot prunes around the meat.
• Drain the fat from the pan, pour in the prune liquid, scrape up the residue and reduce slightly.
• Add the jelly, cream and rosemary and simmer till reduced by half. Pour over the meat and serve.

Notes:

• You might have to add a little stock for the gravy if you use the lesser amount of wine and cream.

Serves 6 -8.

Ingredients:

• 225 g lean lamb mince
• 1½ smallish onions
• 1 – 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 red chilli, finely chopped (optional)
• 2 – 3 tsp garam masala
• 2 tbl chopped mint
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• salt to taste
• small, but not cherry, tomatoes
• oil for grilling
• bamboo skewers

Ingredients: Yoghurt Dip:

• 150 ml plain yoghurt
• 5 cm piece cucumber, deseeded, grated
• 2 tbl chopped mint
• ½ tsp toasted cumin seeds (optional)

Preparation:

• To prepare the yoghurt dip, mix everything well together and chill till required.
• Finely chop one onion and mix thoroughly with the lamb, garlic, chilli (if using), garam masala, mint and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt.
• Divide the mixture into three equal portions, then further divide them into 9 equal portions.
• Roll each of these small portions into a ball. Chill in the refrigerator, if necessary, to firm the meatballs. Roll the balls in oil.
• Cut the remaining onion into wedges and separate the layers. Cut the tomatoes into quarters, or even eighths if they are not really small.
• Thread the koftas on long pre-soaked bamboo skewers as follows: meatball, tomato, onion, meatball, tomato, onion, meatball, tomato, onion.
• Brush the tomatoes and onions with oil. Grill under high heat for about 10 minutes, or until cooked through, turning as necessary. Serve with the yoghurt dip.

Makes 9 skewers.